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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26204053">Exactly What You Run From You End Up Chasing</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MisunderstoodWanderer/pseuds/MisunderstoodWanderer'>MisunderstoodWanderer</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Homestuck</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Detectives, Attempted Murder, Background Relationships, Blood and Gore, Blood and Violence, Disturbing Themes, F/F, F/M, Gen, Horror, M/M, Multi, Murder, Past Relationship(s), Psychological Horror</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:47:42</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,354</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26204053</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MisunderstoodWanderer/pseuds/MisunderstoodWanderer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Exactly what you run from, you end up chasing<br/>(Say it, say it) like, you can't avoid, but<br/>(Hey hey) just chasing it and just like trying (say it, say it)<br/>Giving it everything that you can, there's always an obstacle"</p><p>Detective John Egbert finds himself in the strangest case in his entire career when a series of murders plagues the city of Seattle, Washington. As he tries to figure out who is at the center of it all, he meets Dirk Lalonde, his mysterious new neighbor who he may have a crush on.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dave Strider/Karkat Vantas, John Egbert &amp; Dirk Strider, John Egbert/Dirk Strider, Rose Lalonde/Kanaya Maryam, Terezi Pyrope/Vriska Serket</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Exactly What You Run From You End Up Chasing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>This had been the third body in two weeks. The sickly stench of blood wafted into Detective Egbert’s nose as he got closer to it, seeing the man had probably been killed the same way as the other two bodies discovered were: asphyxiation with bludgeoning post mortem. The corpse’s face was beaten in until it was nothing more than a red, pulpy crater with a bloody trail the rain carried down to the sewage drain. They would have to do another DNA test just to figure out who the poor fucker was. John was starting to be convinced they had a serial killer on their hands. They had found three men killed the exact same way who all had similar features: blonde hair, tall, slightly strong physique, and all Caucasian. They were all led to fairly desolate areas in the city, so far only alleys, where they were then brutally murdered. Besides their looks, they had another thing in common, and that was the strange symbol that was always carefully placed by the right hand on a piece of paper. This one in particular had grown soggy because of the rain, but it only just started a few moments ago, so the symbol was still slightly visible.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he picked up the symbol and put it into an evidence bag, he surveyed the scene for a murder weapon. That was never consistent between these cases. It always seemed to be what was around in the alley. This time, it appeared to be a loose, orange brick, clinging bits of blood-matted blond hair and the victim’s decaying flesh stuck to it. It seemed to be part of one of the apartment buildings that sat on the sides of the alley. This too was put into an evidence bag and set aside, hopefully garnering some fingerprints once it was tested later. Though, John doubted he would be that lucky. They hadn’t found anything that showed that even another person was here. No hair, fingernails, blood, semen, etc. It was like a ghost did it. The person who committed this crime had to be experienced, probably a man with how brutal the faces were left and the fact that there wasn’t much struggle from the victim. Though, that could also be because they were caught off guard. He didn’t know, and he knew it would take a while for him to find out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As the crime scene was slowly wrapped up, the detective stood under his umbrella, thinking to himself. Who committed these crimes? Was it only one person involved? What was the motive? All the men killed weren’t exactly remarkable nor reprehensible. They all had clean slates, were fairly young like himself, and barely had made a name for themselves in terms of careers. They were kind of nobodies, but they definitely weren’t men people would forget. They weren’t homeless or unknown prostitutes. They had families to come home to. One of them was even a young father with a wife and nice white picket fence. He felt bad for their kid. So young to be without a dad. As he lost himself in his thoughts, a familiar, scratchy voice spoke into his ear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Earth to Planet John? Jesus, you’re barely breathing with how hard you’re thinking.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He knew who it was. Lieutenant Terezi Pyrope always seemed to find him despite the fact she couldn’t see. She poked him with her cane. “Seems like you were right about the serial killer thing. At first I thought it was some kind of fucked up homage to someone, but this guy is new. Can’t find his signature anywhere.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Shit. That makes our jobs harder. What kind of self conceited asshole makes his own symbol like this? It's like he wants us to know he’s responsible for it all.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, he is a serial killer, John, and most of them are self conceited assholes. They like the glory of the kill without the consequence. It’s a game to them.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Then I guess we gotta get better at playing.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She snorted at that cheesy line. He wanted to hear her laugh. It’s nice to hear such pleasantries in such a dark place. She let out a sigh, now leaning against him. “Looks like another late night, Detective Egbert. Though, you might want to take it easy. I heard you’ve been staying in for way too long.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m just trying to do my job, Terezi.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, you can’t really do it well if you’re too tired to function, can you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ok. Maybe you’re right. I’ll take tonight off, but I’m working tomorrow.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Fine by me. Just don’t collapse like you did last time. I heard the janitor found you drooling.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ugh, shut up.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She let out a cackle, walking off to her patrol car. He knew she was right. He hadn’t had proper sleep in about a week. Eye crust and headaches were bad enough, but the dark circles under his eyes had started to liken him to a raccoon. He was going to beat Attorney Vantas at this point, and that guy never slept. He practically lived on coffee. He twirled his umbrella a little in his hand before checking in with the other officers, making sure everything at the scene was properly cataloged. Once everything seemed fine, he looked up towards the shining Space Needle as he walked to his car, watching it glow in the darkness. He took a moment to bask in how pretty it was on a full moon before getting into his SUV,  sick of the cold, humid rain surrounding him and knowing he should get home in order to finally sleep for once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he finally made it home to his apartment, he had to take a moment in the car, sighing softly. He had seen some mangled bodies before but the sheer force that this guy was using for every kill was terrifying, even to him. He took a deep breath, in and out, before shutting the engine off and going into his building, the reddish brick kind of similar to the one that was used to murder the vicitm. As he made his way to the third floor, he noticed a guy cleaning something off the ground. He couldn’t really make it out, but the stain seemed to be fresh. Did he live in that apartment? No one had been in there in about a year since the old lady who used to live there died. Guess they finally got someone who wasn’t so superstitious about a ghostly grandmother trying to haunt them. He made his way past the guy, smiling a bit. The man offered him a wave and a soft grin. He was… admittedly attractive to John. He couldn’t help but blush a bit as he fiddled with his keys to open the door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man must have caught his red cheeks because he sort of chuckled, standing up once he had presumably cleaned the stain. That only made John’s face redder. Another deep chuckle left the man before he spoke. “You need some help there? Your hands are trembling a bit.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, I’m fine. Thank you though.” He finally got the door open, grumbling to himself. Could he get anymore embarrassing? You’re a grown man, Egbert, so stop acting like a high schooler.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The man let out another laugh. “You must be my neighbor. I just moved here. I’m Dirk. Dirk Lalonde. It’s nice to meet you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m John Egbert. Nice to meet you as well. Mr. Lalonde.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Now, don’t be so formal. I can’t be much older than you. Call me Dirk.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, Dirk. Have a goodnight.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You too, </span>
  <em>
    <span>John</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The purr of his name made the hairs on the back of John’s neck stand up. He shut his door a bit too quickly, his heart beating a little too fast, wondering who exactly this handsome stranger was. Maybe he could get to know him sometime soon. As he pondered ways to try and talk to his new neighbor, a slip of paper was slid under his door. It was a phone number. Dirk’s phone number. Oh boy.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey everyone! If you've made this far, you've probably read the first chapter of this fic. I hope you enjoyed it! This is my first fanfiction so feedback is appreciated! You can find me on Tumblr at misunderstoodwanderer and Twitter at mwlikestowrite</p></blockquote></div></div>
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